From Dna sequencing down to Parasite Eggs : The downfall of Farmana aDNA
There was the indication that they will Fail to yield the aDNA which i declared as the most important at least for the Indo-European study and for the history of the Aryans but now it appears that they may still come up with something useful, it is not the end...
Scientists to study parasite eggs in Harappan graves
Neha Madaan,TNN | Jan 12, 2014, 12.37 AM IST
PUNE: Archaeologists and scientists may soon find out who exactly the Harappans were, and trace their origin and biological connection with people outside the Harappan region.
After failed attempts to undertake DNA andgenome sequencing of Harappan skeletons in Farmana, Harayana, as the wet, acidic earth of the region had destroyed all DNA in the remains of the dead, archaeologists from the Deccan College Postgraduate and Research Institute have now moved towards the Harappan burials on a private land near Rakhigarhi, which is estimated to be the largest Harappan civilization site located in Hisar district, Haryana and listed among the 10 most endangered heritage sites in Asia.
Partnering with the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and paleoparasitologists from the Seoul National University College of Medicine, Korea, scientists from the Deccan College Post-graduate and Research Institute will now try to capture and study the parasite eggsthat once existed in the stomachs of those buried during the Harappan era, and ultimately isolate the DNA of their host, deposited within these eggs.
These parasites eggs are known to survive for thousands of years and contain the DNA of the host. Scientists said that they would therefore recover the DNA of the dead from these eggs, which in all possibility still remains in the soil where the dead were buried. The DNA will help scientists find out who the Harappans were and trace their origin and biological connection with people outside the Harappan region.
This exercise is part of the fresh excavations that will start in Rakhigarhi from January 12 under the direction of Vasant Shinde, senior archaeologist and vice chancellor/director at the Deccan College Postgraduate and Research Institute. Some of these archaeologists have already reached ground zero and will begin excavation at 'mound number 4'-- the biggest and the tallest of the seven mounds here.
Shinde told TOI that the authorities of the college will approach the landowners of the private land where the burials lay. "Some headway has already been made in terms of the land owners' permission to undertake excavation at this burial site. We had earlier tried to recover and identify the DNA from the remains of the Harappan dead in Farmana, which is around 30-40 km away from Rakhigarhi. But the exercise yielded no result as the ground there is wet and acidic, which is not conducive to the survival of DNA," said Shinde.
Shinde said that archaeologists have already done enough scientific work on the burial customs of the Harappans. "However, what still stumps archaeologists are questions like who exactly were the Harappans and what were their relations with the contemporary people outside of the Harappan region. The only way these questions can be answered is by recovering the DNA of the deceased Harappan," he said.
Shinde said that professor Dong Hoon Shin from Seoul National University College of Medicine has developed a new technique which involves the study of parasites found in the human stomach.
"Every human being has parasites and their eggs in the intestine as a result of ingesting polluted food or water. But even after the death of a person, these parasites survive. Scientists will thus collect soil samples around the lower abdominal skeleton of the deceased to find human parasite eggs," said Shinde, adding that a similar experiment was undertaken in Korea and scientists succeeded in isolating human DNA from such parasite eggs.
Scientists have said that once these tiny eggs deposit in the soil, they get hardened and survive for years.
"The DNA found in the eggs differs from person to person. Every person has different DNA, which comes out clearly after studying these eggs. Hence, scientists can also identify different ancient populations as well as their blood groups once they have recovered these eggs and studied them. This is the only method that has been effective enough to identify DNA of those having died thousands of years ago," he said.
The team of Korean scientists will reach Rakhigarhi on January 25 to begin experiments, which in fact is the result of an official memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Deccan College and Seoul National University College of Medicine, Korea.
"Sometimes these parasite eggs are found in the drainage areas of habitations. Scientists will therefore get soil samples from places such as the Harappan lavatories, drainage and bathing areas during excavations," Shinde said.
After failed attempts to undertake DNA andgenome sequencing of Harappan skeletons in Farmana, Harayana, as the wet, acidic earth of the region had destroyed all DNA in the remains of the dead, archaeologists from the Deccan College Postgraduate and Research Institute have now moved towards the Harappan burials on a private land near Rakhigarhi, which is estimated to be the largest Harappan civilization site located in Hisar district, Haryana and listed among the 10 most endangered heritage sites in Asia.
Partnering with the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and paleoparasitologists from the Seoul National University College of Medicine, Korea, scientists from the Deccan College Post-graduate and Research Institute will now try to capture and study the parasite eggsthat once existed in the stomachs of those buried during the Harappan era, and ultimately isolate the DNA of their host, deposited within these eggs.
These parasites eggs are known to survive for thousands of years and contain the DNA of the host. Scientists said that they would therefore recover the DNA of the dead from these eggs, which in all possibility still remains in the soil where the dead were buried. The DNA will help scientists find out who the Harappans were and trace their origin and biological connection with people outside the Harappan region.
This exercise is part of the fresh excavations that will start in Rakhigarhi from January 12 under the direction of Vasant Shinde, senior archaeologist and vice chancellor/director at the Deccan College Postgraduate and Research Institute. Some of these archaeologists have already reached ground zero and will begin excavation at 'mound number 4'-- the biggest and the tallest of the seven mounds here.
Shinde told TOI that the authorities of the college will approach the landowners of the private land where the burials lay. "Some headway has already been made in terms of the land owners' permission to undertake excavation at this burial site. We had earlier tried to recover and identify the DNA from the remains of the Harappan dead in Farmana, which is around 30-40 km away from Rakhigarhi. But the exercise yielded no result as the ground there is wet and acidic, which is not conducive to the survival of DNA," said Shinde.
Shinde said that archaeologists have already done enough scientific work on the burial customs of the Harappans. "However, what still stumps archaeologists are questions like who exactly were the Harappans and what were their relations with the contemporary people outside of the Harappan region. The only way these questions can be answered is by recovering the DNA of the deceased Harappan," he said.
Shinde said that professor Dong Hoon Shin from Seoul National University College of Medicine has developed a new technique which involves the study of parasites found in the human stomach.
"Every human being has parasites and their eggs in the intestine as a result of ingesting polluted food or water. But even after the death of a person, these parasites survive. Scientists will thus collect soil samples around the lower abdominal skeleton of the deceased to find human parasite eggs," said Shinde, adding that a similar experiment was undertaken in Korea and scientists succeeded in isolating human DNA from such parasite eggs.
Scientists have said that once these tiny eggs deposit in the soil, they get hardened and survive for years.
"The DNA found in the eggs differs from person to person. Every person has different DNA, which comes out clearly after studying these eggs. Hence, scientists can also identify different ancient populations as well as their blood groups once they have recovered these eggs and studied them. This is the only method that has been effective enough to identify DNA of those having died thousands of years ago," he said.
The team of Korean scientists will reach Rakhigarhi on January 25 to begin experiments, which in fact is the result of an official memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Deccan College and Seoul National University College of Medicine, Korea.
"Sometimes these parasite eggs are found in the drainage areas of habitations. Scientists will therefore get soil samples from places such as the Harappan lavatories, drainage and bathing areas during excavations," Shinde said.
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